Assess for success.
As the crucial first step in the Assess – Plan – Improve process, assessment gives you & your staff the data you need to identify strengths & challenge areas, & build safer, more supportive, interactive, & engaging environments for youth.
This page hosts a variety of resources designed to help you effectively observe & collect data. Click the links below to download the PQA that best suits your program.
WHO THEY'RE FOR WHAT THEY MEASURE Research-identified best practices that support environments to be: HOW THEY WORK The Organizational Quality Assessment (OQA) is being piloted in 2022-2023 program year for organizations interested in assessing the structural features of programs, such as policies and practices, staff development, and strategies for program improvement. The blog, Organizational Quality Sets the Stage for Program Quality, provides insight into the development and intended use of the OQA. These supplements serve a positive educational purpose through supporting continuous improvement planning & action and are not appropriate for high-stakes use. The Academic Skill-Building PQA is designed to supplement the Youth and School-Age PQAs, and should be used in conjunction with the relevant training & guidebook. Based on expert mixed-methods research utilizing a diverse sample of tutors, programs, & providers, this tool illuminates best practices for tutoring & other academically focused out-of-school settings. Developed in partnership with Casita Maria Center for Arts and Education, this PQA focuses on quality practices for engaging young people in arts-specific afterschool programs. Designed as a supplement for the Youth PQA, the Health & Wellness PQA focuses on nutrition, physical activity, and mental health and resiliency and is flexibly designed for use with a wide variety of programs. Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics (STEM) PQA The STEM PQA is an observation-based measure of instructional practices to support continuous improvement during STEM programming. Created in partnership with the Providence After School Alliance, the STEM PQA is based on AfterZone Summer Scholars program data. School-Age PQA with Extended Observation Scales This version of the School-Age PQA has additional scales that support walkthrough observation - a method that is used to observe a full range of activities, from activity structure and transitions to departure. This assessment is meant to capture aspects of a program day that are not generally assessed when observing a single program or activity.